Hendrix At 70: “You Can’t Find A Guitar Player Who Hasn’t Used One Of His Licks” – Buddy Guy

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Tuesday (November 27) marks 70 years since the birth of Jimi Hendrix, the man who changed electric guitar and rock and roll forever. Almost every guitarist who followed Jimi has been influenced by him, but it turns out that even guys who were around long before Jimi have been moved by his impact. Including at least one legendary bluesman who Hendrix cited as a hero.

In fact, allegedly the only time Hendrix missed a show was because he wanted to catch a Buddy Guy performance on the same night. Guy told CBS Local that Hendrix showed up with a reel-to-reel recorder and asked to jam with him.

“He said that he wanted to see me play and he cancelled a show that night to see me play. As creative as he was, he didn’t have to miss no show to see nobody! Man, that guy did so much for guitarists… you can’t find a guitar player in the world who hasn’t used one of his licks, including myself.”

In his recently published memoirs, When I Left Home: My Story, Guy wrote, “Can’t remember the song we did, but he joined in with no problems… I could hear that Hendrix was something else.” He recalls that after the set Hendrix thanked him and said “You’re one of my teachers.” Guy wrote, “I was flattered, but I couldn’t remember getting paid for any lessons. I wished him luck and never saw him again.”

Buddy Guy will be one of the honorees at this year’s Kennedy Center Honors ceremony alongside Led Zeppelin, taking place in Washington D.C. on December 2. The ceremony will air on CBS on December 26.